CISG article 2

Legislative history guidance provided: short form

Article 2 citations contained in the Official Records of the Vienna Conference: Official Records of the United Nations Conference on Contracts for the International Sale of Goods, Vienna 10 March-11 April 1980, (hereinafter "Official Records") A/CONF. 97/19 pp. 83-84, 200-201, 238-241, 423. These documents are reprinted in Honnold, "Documentary History of the Uniform Law for International Sales" (Kluwer 1989) (hereinafter "Documentary History") pp. 655-656, 735-736, 459-462, 644. For electronic access to this material, go to Chronology of development of Article 2 at the 1980 Vienna Diplomatic Conference

Text of relevant Secretariat Commentary and caveats associated with its use: The
Secretariat Commentary is on the 1978 Draft of the CISG, not the Official Text of this
Convention. Prior to citing it, one should verify that the article of the 1978 Draft considered by
the UNCITRAL Secretariat is substantively the same as its CISG counterpart. This is generally
the case but it is not always so. SeeArticle 2: 1978 Draft/Official Text, for a match-up of this
article of the 1978 Draft with the Official Text of the CISG. The match-up is accompanied by
editorial comments prepared for this presentation.

Sources of the Secretariat Commentary: The text of the Secretariat Commentary is presented in
the Official Records of the Vienna Diplomatic Conference at Official Records, pp. 14-66. A
photo-offset copy of this text is contained in Honnold's Documentary History, pp. 404-456. For
electronic access to the Secretariat Commentary applicable to this article, go to Legislative history of CISG Article 2: Secretariat Commentary.

An aid to determining whether interpretations of antecedents to the CISG can be relevant
to the interpretation of this article: See Article 2: ULIS-ULF/CISG, for match-up of ULF and
ULIS provisions with this article of the CISG. Citations to antecedents contained in the
Secretariat Commentary are the primary guide to this match-up of antecedents. European
commentators, particularly from Germany and the Netherlands, frequently refer to such ULIS and
ULF antecedents of the CISG.

Caveat: Even where counterpart provisions appear similar or virtually identical, a further
verification is necessary prior to applying ULIS/ULF concepts to the CISG. Each provision of
each uniform law must be evaluated in its own context, in the setting of the uniform law in which
it is contained. For this purpose, see full text of CISG, full
text of ULIS and full text of ULF.

An additional precedent: The Secretariat Commentary cites as an additional precedent for this
article, the Convention on the Limitation Period in the International Sale of Goods (Prescription
Convention), article 4.